Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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NETIWEVALVENOZZLE
The invention relates to a needle valve nozzle actuated
by a power operated actuating device in a hot-runner
injection mold, and to an injection mold, incorporating the
nozzle.
Such needle valve nozzles are known to a person skilled
in the art.
For example, DE 10 2005 024 331 Al shows a needle valve
nozzle with the flow channel of the nozzle and the actuating
direction of the shut-off needle extending in parallel.
Patent Abstracts of Japan 07-251428 shows a construction
with a shut-off needle arranged at an angle to the flow
channel.
With the shut-off needle extending at an angle to the
flow channel, problems occur, since it is in operative
connection with, or passes through, components of a hot-
runner injection mold that are operated at different
temperatures.
A hot-runner injection mold generally comprises on the
one hand components that form the mold cavity and, because of
the desired short setting time of the melt, are cooled by
means of suitable media, designated by K in Figure 1, and on
the other hand components that guide and direct the melt,
designated by W in Figure 1. Since, by contrast with the
cooled components, the components that come into contact with
the melt must not cool the melt, these components are heated.
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The fact that, as explained above, regions of a hot-
runner injection mold are at different temperatures for
operating reasons has the consequence that displacements are
caused by different thermal expansions. In particular in the
case of needle valve nozzles with actuating directions of the
needle that do not extend parallel to the flow channel, this
often has the effect that the shut-off needle and the sealing
seat, forming the closure with it, in the actuating wall of
the mold plate forming the cavity are not axially in line.
The present invention seeks to overcome this
disadvantage.
Accordingly, there is provided a needle valve nozzle
actuated by means of a power operated actuating device in a
hot-runner injection mold, comprising a hot-runner nozzle
with a flow channel and a cooler mold plate, wherein a. the
actuating direction of a shut-off needle and that of the flow
channel of the hot-runner nozzle differ from each other, b.
apart from the actuating device, the shut-off needle is held
in place in the closed position exclusively by the cooler
mold plate at at least two spaced-apart locations, c. one of
the at least two locations is a guiding and sealing sleeve,
which is seated in the cooler mold plate, and d. the guiding
and sealing sleeve extends into the hot-runner nozzle without
contacting the nozzle, so that a gap remains between the
guiding and sealing sleeve and the hot-runner nozzle.
In a further aspect, there is provided an injection
mold, comprising: a mold plate defining at least a portion of
a mold cavity into which a melt is injected through an
opening, the portion of the mold plate surrounding the
opening defining a sealing seat; a hot-runner nozzle disposed
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in the mold plate, the hot-runner nozzle defining a flow
channel to direct the melt into the mold cavity, the hot-
runner nozzle defining a first axis; a needle extending from
the flow channel to the opening to control flow of the melt
into the mold cavity, the needle defining a second axis; an
actuating device connected to the needle to move the needle
between an opened position where the needle disengages the
sealing seat to permit the melt to flow into the mold cavity
and a closed position where the needle engages the sealing
seat to prevent the melt from flowing into the mold cavity; a
sleeve seated in the mold plate to guide the needle from the
actuating device to the opening; wherein the sleeve holds the
needle in place at a first location in the mold plate, and
wherein the first axis and the second axis are disposed at an
angle with respect to one another.
The invention is explained, merely by way of example, in
the drawings and the description which follows.
In the drawing:
Figure 1 shows a cross-section through a hot-runner
injection mold in the operating position of a closed shut-off
needle in a schematic representation;
Figure 2 shows a cutout according to detail A in Figure
1, in the operating position of an opened shut-off needle;
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Figure 3 shows a sectional view of a cutout of a further
hot-runner injection mold with a closed shut-off needle;
Figure 4 shows an enlargement of the cutout from Figure
3;
Figure 5 shows a section through a third hot-runner
injection mold in the operating position of a closed shut-off
needle;
Figure 6 shows an enlargement of the cutout from Figure
5;
Figures 7 to 9 show various further perspective views,
some in section, of the exemplary embodiment from Figure 5.
A wide variety of different types of hot-runner
injection molds are sufficiently well known to a person
skilled in the art to make it unnecessary to discuss them in
detail here.
Figure 1 shows the main components of a hot-runner
injection mold 1, comprising the mold plate 2 and the mold
core 3 as main components, forming an only partially
represented cavity 4, which gives the molding 3 its shape in
the set state.
A molding that has a wall 6 extending at an angle to the
flow channel 7 of the hot-runner nozzle 8 is described.
The melt enters the hot-runner injection mold 1 either
through a nozzle (not represented) that is connected to the
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injection-molding machine and goes into the hot-runner nozzle
8 or is fed to the hot-runner nozzle 8 via a hot-runner
manifold 10.
The temperature distribution in the graphically
represented components of the hot-runner injection mold is
conducted in such a way that, in relation to the hot-runner
nozzle 8, the mold plate 2 represents the cooler component,
which is optionally passed through by cooling channels 11.
By contrast, the hot-runner nozzle 8 is heated. This heating
is schematically indicated by heating coils 21.
The shut-off needle 13 is connected by its end remote
from the hot-runner nozzle 8 to an actuating device 12, which
may be formed in accordance with the known prior art and can
move the shut-off nozzle 13 in the directions of the double-
headed arrow. The line 25 is intended to indicate that the
actuating device 12 is connected in mechanical engineering
terms to the hot-runner injection mold.
In Figure 1, the needle is shown in the closed position,
it entering the wall 15 of the mold plate 2 and creating a
sealing seat 14. The molding 5 is in this way separated from
the flow channel 7 and the gaps 22 to 24.
In Figure 2, the detail A according to Figure 1 is
represented with a shut-off needle 13 in the opened position,
after movement in the direction of the arrow 19, thereby
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forming a flow path 20, by which the mold cavity can be
filled with melt.
The figures illustrate the concept of the invention of
this application very clearly.
Apart from the actuating device 12, the shut-off needle
13 is held in place exclusively by the cooler mold plate 2.
The guiding and sealing sleeve 17 is seated in the cooler
mold plate 2, a screw connection being advantageously
possible for this. This guiding and sealing bushing assumes
the temperature of the cooler mold plate and is therefore
likewise to be considered to be cool.
A further bushing 18 can be seen at the free end of the
shut-off needle. This serves as a heat conducting sleeve and
is not in contact with the shut-off needle, but serves for
conducting heat from the heated hot-runner nozzle 8 as far as
possible into the wall 15, in order to prevent
disadvantageous cooling of the melt in the region of the wall
15 before it enters the mold cavity.
This makes it clear that the shut-off needle only has
contact with cooler regions of the mold plate 2. On the one
hand with the cool guiding and sealing bushing 17 and on the
other hand by contact with the wall 15, with which it forms a
sealing seat.
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The invention is not restricted to a specific angle
between the shut-off needle 13 and the flow channel 7. It is
therefore within the scope of the invention to make the angle
both greater and smaller than the graphically represented
angle of about 45 without departing from the concept of the
invention.
Figures 3 and 4 show a further exemplary embodiment of
the invention in which the shut-off needle 13 is once again
in the closed position, in which it is held in place at two
spaced-apart locations in the cooler mold plate 2.
The shut-off needle 13 and the guiding and sealing
sleeve 26 (needle guide), which is longer in comparison with
Figure 1, in this case pass through a through-bore 27
(Figures 3 and 4) or a gap 28 (Figures 5 to 9) in the hot-
runner nozzle 8, the shut-off needle being aligned at an
angle a > 0 and preferably < 90 , in particular a 30 to 60 ,
preferably a = 45 , in relation to the axis of longitudinal
extent X of the hot-runner nozzle 8 or in relation to the
flow channel 7. In the closed position, the shut-off needle
13 in this case passes completely through the hot-runner
nozzle 8 at the angle a. In the closed position, moreover, a
sealing seat 14 is formed with respect to the mold plate 2,
with the free end of the shut-off needle 13 entering said
seat in this position.
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The shut-off needle 13 is once again held at its end
remote from the sealing seat 14 - with respect to the closed
position - by a guiding and sealing sleeve 26 in the cooler
mold plate 2, the guiding and sealing sleeve 26 extending
here into the through-bore 27 or the groove 28 of the hot-
runner nozzle 8, to be precise preferably into the region of
the further bushing 18, which serves as a heat conducting
sleeve. The needle guide or guiding and sealing sleeve 26
may also extend to just before the bushing 18 or to beyond
the bushing 18, to be precise to just before the sealing seat
14.
The guiding and sealing sleeve 26 lengthened in this way
optimizes or enhances the guidance of the shut-off needle 13
and stabilizes it further in the direction of the second
guiding position on the sealing seat 14.
To simplify the assembly and disassembly of the hot-
runner nozzle or the shut-off needle 13, the hot-runner
nozzle may also be provided with an obliquely introduced
groove 28 (see Figures 5 to 9) instead of a through-bore 27.
This has the advantage that fitting and removal of the
hot-runner nozzle 8 is possible without having to disassemble
the shut-off needle 13 including its needle guide 26, see for
example Figure 5.
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The heat conducting element that is used - bushing 18 -
as shown in Figures 1 to 3 may also be formed - in particular
with the groove configuration of Figure 5 - as an integral
part of the nozzle body 8 in the form of a heat conducting
continuation 29.
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Designations
Hot-runner injection mold 1
Mold plate 2
Mold core 3
Cavity 4
Molding 5
Wall 6
Flow channel 7
Hot-runner nozzle 8
Hot-runner manifold 10
Cooling channel 11
Actuating device 12
Shut-off needle 13
Sealing seat 14
Wall 15
Guiding and sealing sleeve 17, 26
Bushing 18
Direction of arrow 19
Heating coil 21
Gaps 22, 23, 24
Line 25
Through-bore 27
Gap 28
Heat conducting continuation 29
